Cryptocurrency has not changed the cannabis industry

There was turmoil in the marijuana world as legalization became the norm in more and more states. Everyone wanted to jump on the bandwagon. Cryptocurrency was offered as a solution for pharmacies that were unable to accept traditional loans. Additionally, weed lovers could make money with “pot coins.” At the time, the industry was flooded with conferences and crypto was a topic on stage and at closing events. Mainstream and marijuana media ate it up. But cryptocurrency hasn't changed the cannabis industry.

The best example of cryptocurrency not solving a major cannabis industry problem is the furor over the sluggish Biden administration rescheduling and the Senate endorsing SAFER Banking. Both will have a significant impact across the industry, creating jobs, investment and hope. Together they will create an atmosphere in which small and large companies and large operators have a fair chance of success.

RELATED: Yacht Rock pairs perfectly with cocktails

One of the most famous boom and bust moments in cryptocurrencies was in 2018. High Time was just in the early coin moment and announced that they would accept this as a way to invest in their IPO. Days later, they removed Bitcoin as a payment option for the pending IPO.

Photo by MichaelWuensch via Pixabay

Several companies wanted to exploit a supposed loophole to sell cannabis using credit cards. Each company came closer, and then the attempt failed. Posabit, now a specialized point-of-sales system for pharmacies, tried it for a short time and got it to work. In fact, the site updated its FAQ with an explanation saying, “Why is credit card processing illegal?” (…) Quite simply, cannabis is federally classified as a Schedule 1 controlled substance, making it illegal. This prevents loan payment processors from knowingly working with cannabis companies.”

Eaze tried to find a workaround to charge credit cards by disguising the nature of the charges. Then Smoakland tried the same thing, but gave up when her litigation partner ended the relationship.

RELATED: Yacht Rock pairs perfectly with cocktails

“Crypto has not changed the legal cannabis industry. It is not an accepted payment method in pharmacies and I have not seen any providers using it. However, cryptocurrencies are popular for black market purchases because they are global and harder to trace,” explained Jesse Redmond, head of cannabis at Water Tower Research.

And how are marijuana crypto companies doing?

PotCoin (POT) is trading at $0.00083517.

Tokes (TKS) is trading at $0.001874.

CannabisCoin (CANN) is trading at $0.004641.

Cryptocurrency hasn't changed the cannabis industry, but federal action has.